Demons
by ofthehallows
Summary: While everyone searches through the rubble of FACE, Rogue discovers an injured female Dragon Slayer who seems to be a victim of the Demons' experimentation. With the battle won and dragons departed, everyone thought their troubles ended with the defeat of Tartaros... But little do they know Acnologia will soon return with a new target in mind. (UNDER CONSTRUCTION).
1. Chapter 1

**Hey y'all, this is the edited version of the original Chapter 1. As I said in the summary, THIS STORY IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION. Don't freak out, I'm just fixing things and making it more acceptable for you, and for me. And Because I nitpick everything... Rating changed to M for language, violence, and possible adult themes.**

**Disclaimer: I wouldn't be writing fanfiction if I owned Fairy Tail.**

* * *

It's been exactly one hour since the destruction of F.A.C.E., and the defeat of Tartaros. The gathering energy was so great; it even caught the attention of Acnologia himself, and drew him to the battle. It was a miracle when Igneel materialized to combat the beast, because most of the mages would have died had he not. The Dragon of Chaos escaped after getting a sound beating from Igneel, but the Fire King fell as a result. After the carnage ceased, it was evident that the book of E.N.D. disappeared. It is strange to think a simple object, such as a book, could bring about such calamity.

After the dragons demolished the pillars, everything fell into ruin. The already destroyed Tartaros headquarters was practically buried underneath all of the crumbling F.A.C.E. pillars in the immediate area. The earth shook as they fell. After the dust cleared, everyone who wasn't severely injured or incapacitated began to sift through the rubble in order to search for any remaining survivors.

Lucy teamed up with Levy and ten others, who were currently farther away digging up piles of rock in hope of finding anything, or anyone, to salvage. She wanted to comfort Natsu, but thought it best to leave him be while he grieved.

On the other side of the perimeter, Rogue and Sting helped an injured Minerva make it back across the mile-long dead zone to the other mages, all the while keeping an eye out for others in need of help. When they heard earlier that Natsu managed to defeat the King of Hades, all three of them were stunned into silence, but they already knew he was an anomaly. However, Sting had a lot to say when he got over the initial shock that came with the news.

"Jesus _fucking_ Christ! How in the hell am I gonna keep up with that guy? We're over here getting our asses kicked, when he comes out swinging like a fucking machine after hours of this shit!" Yeah. Sting was still sore over their loss in the Grand Magic Games, but Rogue knew he continued to admire him. He sighed to himself, but suddenly sensed something peculiar in the wind. The Shadow Mage turned to listen intently.

"_Help…" _

It was barely audible, but Rogue heard it well enough to know he wasn't hallucinating.

"Sting, did you hear that?" Sting, who was still ranting about Natsu, halted in his speech and gave him a strange look.

"Hear what? Somethin' wrong?" Obviously, Sting was too busy complaining to have heard it, but Rogue knew he wasn't going nuts.

"_Help..."_

There it was again. It wasn't so much of a vocalization, as it was a whisper traveling on the wind. Rogue could tell it came from not too far away, and directly north of their current location. Since it could be a survivor, he decided it would be a good idea to check investigate.

"Take Minerva and keep going," he said. Sting gave him a questioning look, but stopped walking to shift Minerva's weight fully onto himself anyway.

"Ok, but where are you going exactly?" Sting was eying Rogue suspiciously, but not in accusation. Rogue didn't reply, but instead looked in the direction where he heard the noise, trying to pinpoint its exact location.

"I need to check something out, go on ahead." Rogue didn't want Minerva left untreated too long due to the severity of her injuries. He knew Sting would get her back to civilization safely, so he figured it would be best if those two kept moving. Sting nodded and continued on, knowing Rogue wouldn't leave them without an acceptable reason.

"Alright, be careful."

Rogue nodded in response and stayed planted in that spot until he could barely see them in the distance. After which, he wasted no time heading in the direction of the voice. It was not too far away, but according to his honed senses, it seemed to be coming from the other side of an enormous mountain of rubble in the distance.

* * *

As Rogue got closer to the determined location, he began to pick up certain scents. Blood, lots of blood. And fear. He was cautious in his approach, for he had no idea whether he would encounter an ally or an enemy. Slowly, he peered around the mound to survey the area. At first, he didn't see anything, but was able to clearly hear somebody shouting from across the debris. Rogue could make out a feminine voice, along with someone breathing raggedly about thirty meters away.

"_Katja, stop! They're gone_!" The owner of the voice seemed to be pleading with a second person in the clearing, who was clearly the source of the metallic scent coming in waves from the area. Rogue could also acutely pinpoint the source of fear, which appeared to be coming from the same source. He decided now would be a good time to move from his spot and quietly enter the clearing, but what he saw took a few moments for his mind to process.

In the middle of the rubble sat a purple cat, who was contained in a cramped metal cage. Rogue realized at this point that she was an Exceed, and the source of the voice he heard moments ago. Next, he shifted his gaze towards the figure standing, more like slouching, about twenty feet away. She was tall for a woman, a few centimeters shorter than his 182 stature, with a curly mop of blonde hair that appeared red in areas from blood. That wasn't what caught his attention; she was injured, heavily. Large and peculiar circular wounds covered her limbs, and there were probably more on her abdomen or back hidden by what looked like a filthy pillowcase.

Rogue was about to approach her, when he was hit with an onslaught of energy coming from the woman directly ahead of him. An aura of malice pulsed around her body. Rogue started moving towards the woman, and the Exceed began crying out to her again shortly after.

"_You need to calm down, Kat! Can't you hear me_?" The purple cat began to cry as she desperately tried to reach her friend, and it was only then she took notice of Rogue moving towards the blonde woman.

"_Stay back_! _Don't get any closer, she'll kill you_!" she screamed over the noise. Rogue was worried as to why this Exceed was telling him to retreat, but he couldn't just leave them both there, especially the wounded girl whom the Exceed called "Katja".

"_It's alright_," he shouted to the purple cat, "_I'm here to help you, who is she_?" The purple cat replied that her name is, in fact, Katja, but there was something weird about said girl. Upon getting close enough, he realized that her eyes were black. Completely black. Rogue could also spot what appeared to be dark crystalline scales partially covering her face and forearms, accompanied by a large burgundy stone that rested in the middle of her forehead. He was slightly baffled, considering her scales seemed eerily similar to those that appeared during "Dragon Force" and became concerned about how she could possess such attributes otherwise.

However, before Rogue could say anything to her, Katja seemed to take notice of his presence as her body stiffened. He stood absolutely still for about a minute, so as not to frighten her in her current state. It was after a few moments passed that she began to speak in a deep, feminine voice.

"_Daiyar__yū__ no…" _Rogue couldn't find the will to move as she began uttering the spell, and the only thing he heard was the Exceed cry out in alarm, "Katja, no! Don't!"

"_Kangoku!" _Katja exclaimed, concluding the spell while he braced himself for the attack.

Nothing happened as Rogue waited to feel some sort of impact, only a sudden glassy sound came from somewhere behind him. He didn't move for a good thirty seconds out of caution, but then turned around slowly to see what had transpired. His eyes widened immensely at what met his vision a few feet away, and it would appear in his dreams for weeks to come.

There was a figure who seemed to be a faceless minion of Tartaros, holding a wicked-looking knife above its head. However, it was completely incased in what closely resembled ice. Upon touching it however, Rogue found that it was not cold in the slightest, but instead was some sort of crystalline structure created by Katja.

'_Wait,_'he thought, '_Daiyaryuu…_' and then reeled at the notion that this woman was a Dragon Slayer, and of _Diamond_ no less. He realized immediately afterwards that she just saved him from being stabbed in the back, by incasing the bastard in _diamond_. Rogue didn't have time to ponder the matter further, because he was jolted out of his thoughts when he felt an impact on the ground near his feet, and the purple Exceed started to panic.

Rogue turned to see that she was out cold, and bleeding on the ground in front of him. The onyx-haired Dragon Slayer quickly knelt down to survey the damage when he noticed how heavily she was breathing, well, more like wheezing. The scales and the large gem on her forehead had disappeared completely, only leaving scars and fresh wounds on her sickly pale skin. At this point Rogue decided he didn't have the time to waste here, when he should be getting her back to camp where she could get some serious medical attention from Wendy and Porlyusica.

He quickly went and broke the lock on the Exceed's cage, who flew over and pawed at Katja's face while calling her name, in a frantic gesture to see if she would respond. Only, the cat began to cry and hyperventilate when the young woman didn't even so much as twitch. Rogue sighed and went over to calm the Exceed enough in order to help him hoist Katja onto his back, all the while being mindful of her wounds, which continued oozing blood.

Katja was heavy on his back due to the large amount of muscle she possessed, plus her tallness, but he could carry her well enough. The purple Exceed, whom he now knew as Eve, seemed to be in good enough health to fly next to him for the majority of the walk back, which took about an hour. Eve was helpful in ways of keeping an eye on Katja and moving hair out of his face so that he could see, because he lost his hair-tie some time ago during the previous battle. Near the end of their trek, Eve lost the energy to fly, so she spent the last ten minutes clinging to the top of his head.

* * *

The three of them made it back to the makeshift camp just as the sun began to set, and Rogue was ready to collapse. Their journey probably wouldn't have taken such a toll on him if he didn't have to consistently climb over piles of debris blocking their path, and it didn't help that Katja was a deadweight while unconscious. Rogue looked around as he trudged further into the grounds, and after a minute, he caught sight of Sting casually flipping his dagger while talking to some female mage he can't remember the name of. Moments later, Sting took notice of them and started walking towards their little group.

"Rogue, where the hell have you been? And who the hell is _that_?" Sting leaned to the side trying to get a better look at the person on his back. Rogue gave him an annoyed look out of fatigue, "Later, Sting. Where are Porlyusica and Wendy?" Sting shot him an unamused look, but then turned and began shouting obnoxiously.

"PORLYUSICA! WENDY! MY OH-SO-SERIOUS FRIEND NEEDS YOUR HELP OVER HERE! There, happy?" Rogue could feel a vein in his temple pulse and was seriously considering punching the man, but was interrupted when he saw the two healers come out of a tent and start towards him at quite a clip.

Wendy made it to him before Porlyusica by a few moments, but stopped dead when she spotted the purple Exceed who currently occupied the top of his head. Her eyes were larger than normal as she eyed the strangely colored cat, and Rogue started to feel uncomfortable under her gaze. Lucky for him, Porlyusica came to his rescue when she pushed Sting out of the way and accidentally bumped Wendy's shoulder in her haste, knocking Wendy out of her daze.

"Who have you found? Quickly boy! Let me see…" Porlyusica was in complete nurse mode. Nobody who valued their life dared to get in her way while in this state. Rogue turned slightly in order to make Katja visible to the two females, and began removing her from his back while he started informing them of what he knew.

"Her name is Katja," he replied. After he handed the unconscious woman off to Porlyusica and another mage that came to help, he gently pried Eve off his head and held her out to Wendy. "This Exceed seems to be close to the girl, she'll tell you what you need to know." However, when Wendy moved to take Eve, the purple cat hissed in fear. Wendy recoiled a bit, but then gave her a kind smile and calmly coaxed her into her arms.

"It's alright now. Why don't you come with me and we'll get you cleaned up." Eve kept her body stiff for a few moments, but gradually relaxed, and agreed to go with the petite Dragon Slayer.

After they disappeared into the Med station, Rogue walked over to the camp's edge and collapsed onto a log, where he almost immediately started to doze.

* * *

**Heyyyy... Thanks for reading, I hope you guys enjoyed it. Please drop a review for me, even if you hated it, haha.**

**Thanks as always!**

**~ofthehallows~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Heyyyyyyyy... Wassup? Haha, anyway, here is the edited version of Chapter 2. I needed to fix and rewrite some in order to feel good about it, but not much has changed plot-wise. So, I hope you enjoy, and please drop a review afterwards to tell me what you think!**

**Disclaimer: Alright people, look at Hiro Mashima. Now, look back to me. Look at him, now back to me. Look at him, now back to me. Sadly, he isn't me.**

* * *

Rogue hadn't realized how tired his body was until he actually got off his feet, and his muscles sang in relief when he finally let them relax. He realized quickly that for the first time in a while, there wasn't anybody around who required his immediate attention. Not that Rogue dislikes people, but since Sting assumed leadership over Sabertooth, there has always been one member or another occupying his time. The battle against Tartaros and retrieving Minerva also consumed a large amount of his energy that he had not yet recovered.

His thoughts drifted towards the events that occurred in the past few hours following the defeat of Tartaros; namely towards the girl he found amongst the decimated structure that once stood as the demon guild's headquarters. Memories of Katja's ragged appearance came to Rogue's mind as he recalled their unusual encounter.

_What was she doing there? Why was she injured so heavily?_ All of these questions plagued his thoughts while he pondered the subject. Katja's blonde curly hair barely touched her shoulders, and unnaturally darkened by the sheer amount of dirt and grime matting it down. Her arms and legs were covered in large circular wounds that continuously oozed blood, but he couldn't even begin to imagine what had caused them. Rogue became uneasy when he thought of how her eyes looked at the time; overshadowed with darkness, as if possessed. Seeing something like that first-hand was unnerving, to say the least.

He was thankful Eve was present during the whole ordeal, or he might not have been able to even get close to the woman while she was in that state. She reeked of blood and fear, which explained her extreme form of self-defense, but he hadn't a clue what threatened her at the time. Rogue still didn't know who she was, from where she came, or any details besides her name. He decided then that when she woke up, _if _she woke up, he'd definitely ask her to explain what happened and where she came from. Katja was unconscious the last time Rogue saw her, and he hoped that she would get enough rest in order to make the trip back to Magnolia in the coming days.

Concluding that thought, Rogue decided to drop the subject, because mulling over it only served to fuel his curiosity. His muscles twitched with fatigue as he tried to shift into a more comfortable position on the log, but gave up after a while and ended up sitting against the thing. A short while later, sleep consumed him despite how hard he fought the exhaustion.

In the moments following, Rogue began to dream; he saw a world of discolor, consisting of red and grey. The ground where he stood sprouted dead grass, and tainted red by what he suspected to be blood.

Was he afraid? No. Why, you might ask? Well, Rogue is well accustomed to dreams of such likeness. Since childhood, Rogue's subconscious took to punishing his existence through means of frequent nightmares. He knew there would be no waking himself from this dream. The only thing Rogue could do was let it run its course.

* * *

Wendy and Porlyusica were swamped with injured mages from the battle that occurred a few hours ago. The worst of them; Erza, Mirajane, Minerva and the strange girl whom Rogue brought to camp just now, were currently being housed inside the small medical tent.

The new girl was taller and heavier than either of them are, so it took some effort to lift her unconscious form onto one of the beds. Once they placed her on the cot, Wendy and Porlyusica set to work removing the filthy cloth that barely covered the blonde woman's body. They layered thick strips of cotton over her large breasts and lower abdomen so her wounds would be accessibly for cleaning and treatment. This girl, Katja, had wounds of which the elder woman had never seen the likes of before; covering her arms, legs, and abdomen were quarter-sized holes placed in columns trailing down her body. They were much too large to be from needles, and too uniform to be from bullets; the pattern in which the wounds were placed indicated that some sort of objects once protruded from them.

After Porlyusica and Wendy cleaned and wrapped the visible wounds on the front of Katja's body, they carefully maneuvered her into a sitting position to examine her back. Upon getting into closer proximity, Wendy immediately noticed the subtle scent of dragon she possessed under the layer of blood that was currently covering the skin of her back.

"Madam Porlyusica-" She started, but was cut off.

"I know, child…"

Porlyusica wasn't looking at her, but Wendy could tell that her teacher was puzzled from the tone in which she spoke. Not one of the current Dragon Slayers smell even remotely of dragon nowadays. Katja did not smell of fire and smoke like Natsu or Igneel however, but maybe a dragon closer to the Earth element. Under the dried blood, she smelled of clay and crisp, autumn air that carries the scent of an approaching winter.

Wendy snapped out of her thoughts when Porlyusica let out an audible gasp; there, in the dead center of Katja's back, was the blood-red mark of Tartaros. She began to stiffen in alarm, but halted when Porlyusica answered her unvoiced question.

"Fear not, this girl is definitely human. However, it is puzzling that she possesses that demon guild's branding…"

After Porlyusica spoke, they dropped the topic and continued providing medical attention to the unconscious woman. They found the strange wounds all down her spine as well, which brought an even more concerned look onto Porlyusica's face. Wendy held Katja stationary in a sitting position while her mentor continued cleaning and wrapping her wounds; they also cleaned as much blood from her skin as they could, but there was nothing to be done about her mess of hair with their current accommodations. Porlyusica decided it would be a good idea to take a sample of her blood for testing and examination, therefore she quickly whipped out a syringe and withdrew what she needed.

Once they had finished and slipped a simple cotton dress over Katja's head, Wendy and Porlyusica left to give first aid to the other less-severe cases waiting in the outside clearing.

* * *

Katja slowly opened her eyes after what felt like a century. Pain circulated throughout her limbs and abdomen as she clenched her fingers and toes, but didn't move otherwise while she tried to register her surroundings. Multiple colors invaded Katja's vision as her eyes adjusted to the light, and according the brightness it seemed to be… Midday? Morning? She didn't know. It felt like ages passed since she had last seen daylight, and all of these colors nearly made her eyes tear up in their brilliance.

Cautiously, she began to move her legs over the cot, so as to maneuver herself into a sitting position. The previous pain intensified immediately. Going from a throbbing sensation, to a full out stab in multiple areas of her body.

Wincing, Katja slowly got to her feet, but had to grab onto the cot rail in order to keep her shaking legs from buckling under her.

_Damn it, _she silently cursed as a sudden wave of nausea swept over her, making her vision blur with effort while trying not to vomit. Raising a hand to sweep her matted locks away from her face, Katja stopped half way when she noticed the bandages covering most of her skin. She then looked down to see that she adorned a short, clean dress. Due to her height, it only reached mid-thigh, allowing her to view the bruises that speckled her legs in places not concealed by bandages.

Grimacing at the sight, she continued to inspect the exposed skin while assessing the damage done to her body, where she found injuries appeared to cover the majority of it.

After completing the task, Katja looked up and came to realize that she had no idea where she was. The whole space was very tidy and smelled of rubbing alcohol, which made her nose burn upon inhaling. Light streamed into the area courtesy of the ajar tent flap next to the cot she occupied, and the breeze coming through was fresh, but tinted with the scent of wood smoke. She felt uneasy; not because she sensed danger, but the fact that everything was so _clean _made her feel like she was dirtying the place. Her hair was filthy and absolutely _reeked_ of what could be a mix of multiple foul things. Unfortunately, she couldn't do anything to alleviate the situation at the moment.

Katja gingerly lifted her arms so that she could run her fingers through the mangled locks, but became annoyed when the curls couldn't be tamed. The mess that was her hair would take _forever_ to brush out, and just getting it clean again would be an event in itself. God, she could only imagine the amount of fuss that Eve would- she halted mid-thought in realization.

_Eve. _

She spun around and quickly surveyed the area inside the tent, completely ignoring her body's protests in the process only to find that the purple Exceed was nowhere to be found. It wasn't even possible to get a hint of Eve's scent with the overwhelming odor of rubbing alcohol assaulting her senses.

Katja had no idea where she was, how she got here, or who she'd be dealing with. Were these people mages, regular citizens, the military?

_What the fuck is going on? _In that moment, panic hit her like a ton of bricks. _Where am I? What's going on? Where's Eve? Where is Eve? WHERE IS EVE?!_

She was doing everything possible not to completely lose her mind, but the sudden onslaught of panic and confusion weren't helping her anxiety. Katja was about to exit the tent and search for her friend, but stiffened when she heard something move a short distance from her hiding place.

"_Hey, watch it Flame Brain,"_ a male voice spoke while passing the tent, and another interjected while heading in the same direction.

"_Fuck off, Ice Princess_!" The two men stopped not far from the tent to continue their banter. Katja decided that she would not dare to move until they both left the immediate proximity; however, they continued their childish argument for another five minutes before moving onto a more serious topic. It was then the first figure made a comment that caught her attention.

"_Yeah, my old man was powerful, but even he had nothin' on Mard Geer_…" For reasons unknown, that statement shook her whole being with rage.

_What is this feeling? _She thought with rising hostility, _where are you, Eve? _She fought to quell her rage, but there was no stopping it once her vision bled crimson.

* * *

Rogue jolted awake as his nightmare concluded, nearly falling sideways due to the sudden movement. The dream had been a strange one, but that wasn't unusual to say the least. A twinge of pain from his back, which was stiff from leaning against the log all night, made him groan in annoyance.

Looking up, he saw that the sky was a brilliant blue, instead of the orange that he recalled falling asleep to. He realized that it must be at least noon by now, if not later, and should probably go find Frosch since he neglected to speak the Exceed before wandering over to his current location.

Getting to his feet, Rogue briefly stretched his weary muscles and began making his way towards the campsite. His stomach growled loudly as he realized that he forgot to eat after arriving the previous day, and hunger didn't improve his mood in the slightest.

Despite his demeanor, Rogue enjoyed a large meal just like any other Dragon Slayer. Therefore, it was no surprise when food would be his priority after finding Frosch.

The camp clearing was within sight, but Rogue stopped in his tracks when he sensed a disturbance that made him suddenly alert. He listened, beginning to hear raised voices and sounds of a struggle as well as a magical presence of immense proportions. Rogue knew something was wrong when he heard multiple people start shouting. Picking up his pace once more, Rogue made it to the edge of the clearing when he was ambushed by a familiar sensation.

'_Where is she? Where is she? WHERE IS SHE?!'_

He found these stray thoughts eerily familiar, but decided there wasn't time for him to try and recall where he heard them before. Rogue proceeded to enter the camp's clearing, and was surprised to see a large mass of mages crowded in the center.

There seemed to be a brawl going on in the center of the camp; three figures he knew to be Natsu Dragneel, Elfman Strauss, and Gajeel Redfox of Fairy Tail circled around another figure whom he could not clearly see.

Rogue looked over a little to the side and saw the ice mage, Gray Fullbuster, out cold on the ground, with what looked like a bloody imprint of a fist on his face. The three male mages began to shift around, as if preparing to intercept an attack. It was then that Gajeel began to speak.

"What're ya doin' kid? Comin' out here like a punk, pickin' fights and shit… We don't even know you…" Gajeel sounded annoyed, but not totally angry. Rogue realized Gajeel was being cautious, but he didn't have time to think about it further when Elfman joined the conversation.

"You have impressive strength, so it must take a _real _man to subdue you!"

"Shut the hell up Elfman, I bet I could take er'! C'mon, show me whatcha got!" Natsu interjected loudly, whilst flames began crawling up his arms. That guy is always itching for a fight.

_What the hell? _Rogue was confused and annoyed simultaneously, for they were just sparring and making noise, per usual. He was about to turn and leave again, when Natsu let out a grunt of pain and was sent flying into the tent Rogue was standing right next to. It made a loud crashing noise as Natsu barreled into the thing, with shouts of alarm coming from whoever was inside. Rogue was about to see if they were alright, when the onslaught of thoughts made contact with his ears once again.

'_Wherewherewherewherewhere…" _He spun around, suddenly remembering just _why_ this noise was so familiar. Rogue heard Natsu get back up from behind him and watched as he re-entered the clearing, while rubbing the large bruise forming on his arm. His gaze followed the pink-haired mage, but let it continue on to the now-visible figure they were surrounding.

Sure enough, as he feared, standing in the clearing having a face-off with Gajeel, Elfman, and Natsu, was Katja. She looked different however; her arms and legs were completely covered with white bandages, and she sported a short, thin dress that must have come from the medical bay.

He was relieved that her eyes resembled a normal person's, but they were wide with fury as she stared down the challengers. Her hair was still filthy, but Rogue ignored this detail when he picked up the subtle reflective tint of her skin.

_The hell? _He concluded quickly that she must have armored herself with diamond scales, but they looked quite different from when they first met. Back then, those were much darker, nearly black. These had no color, and only appeared a pale shade of blue as they refracted light.

Meanwhile, Katja was growling menacingly at the remaining men blocking her path.

_Like last time, _He thought, and was about to warn the three of them when Gajeel stole his chance.

"All right kid, enough playin'. Don't make me get rough with ya." Gajeel's eyes narrowed as his skin began to turn hard and metallic, summoning his iron scales.

Katja was a large woman; she stood taller than Natsu by a few centimeters and her whole body was thick with muscle, but still curved femininely. Rogue was worried; not so much for Katja, but for those three who had no idea what powerful magic she possessed. The sheer impenetrability of the "armor" she created was terrifying, making it the ultimate form of defensive magic. Her ability was in likeness to Gajeel's, but he knew the Iron Dragon Slayer would have trouble if the two engaged in hand-to-hand combat while Katja still adorned her diamond scales.

It was then Rogue heard a snarl from Katja, and it was directed towards Gajeel who looked ready to attack the woman.

"If that's how you wanna play," Gajeel gave no warning as he rushed towards the girl, aiming to land a punch somewhere on her body.

"Gajeel, WAIT!" Rogue shouted in warning towards the man, but there wasn't anything he could do to stop him.

The Iron mage had appeared quickly in front of Katja, relying on brute strength to land a hit on her. However, she met his punch with equal force, effectively shattering the iron scales covering his right arm, leaving it bare. Taking advantage of his bafflement, she grabbed said arm, not allowing the larger man to put distance between them. Gajeel got a good look at her face in that moment, seeing how she clenched her teeth in rage and her irises darkened as her hostility grew by the second.

Katja lifted her free arm into the air and the appendage morphed into a beautiful, yet wicked looking blade made of a transparent crystalline material. Nobody, not even Gajeel moved in that instant, they were all mesmerized by the unusual form of magic.

"_Daiya__ryū__ken,"_ She began to recite, raising her arm higher while she did so.

_Shit, _Rogue thought, _she's trying to kill him._

Suddenly, Gajeel snapped to attention. Physically yanking the girl into mid-air, he threw her across the clearing as far away from himself as possible. She landed heavily on all fours, but her arm was no longer that menacing blade it had been just moments ago. Gajeel's eyes were wide as he panted due to the wave of adrenaline, and he had an astonished look on his face.

"You… How the-?" Gajeel was cut off mid-sentence when Katja cut him off.

"_Where is she?" _Her voice was deep, like Erza's, but rough from misuse. Katja was panting also, and Rogue noticed that her bandages were beginning to stain red from the wounds she reopened during the earlier scuffle with the three men. She didn't seem to be planning another attack, so he decided to step in. He walked straight into the clearing, planting himself firmly between the two.

"Raios-," Gajeel began to protest.

"Its fine, Gajeel."

"She's not playin' around…"

"I know." Rogue was a man of few words, everybody knew that by now.

"You know…?" Gajeel seemed suspicious, but Rogue didn't have time to explain.

"I brought her here."

After that statement Gajeel seemed to back off, allowing Rogue to approach the girl slowly. She didn't move as he came towards her, but her hostile gaze never left his form. He stopped moving about a meter from where she stood and fixed her with his snake-like eyes.

Rogue thought it best to stay calm when talking to her; Katja was disoriented and exhausted. Moreover, she was self-defensive to a dangerous level, according to what he witnessed the day before.

He decided to let her make the first move, which she obliged after staring at him for a good thirty seconds.

Katja stepped forward and seized the front of his robe, forcing him to narrow the distance separating them. Rogue was close enough to look down and see that her irises were a myrtle green in color, and that her pupils were ever so slightly slit, like his and Gajeel's, but not to such an extent. He could feel her strength through the grip she had on him, but also how her body trembled with fatigue. Rogue didn't say anything, deciding to let her speak first, if she chose to at all. However, he needn't wait long- for she opened her mouth and out came her deep, resonant voice.

"_Where. Is. Eve?"_

* * *

**_Soooooo, thank you for reading and for putting up with my smartass notes on every chapter, haha. Anyway, even if you hated it, please drop a review. 'Cause I ain't afraid a' no flames!_**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okayyyyyyyyy, so, here is the edited version of Chapter 3. I fixed some random mistakes and other minor things...**

**Disclaimer: Anime and characters are not mine (besides Katja and Eve), duh.**

* * *

"_Where. Is. Eve?"_

Rogue didn't dare move, especially not while this woman still aggressively held onto his clothing.

He could tell she was close to losing consciousness by the way her whole body trembled with fatigue. But just like any Dragon slayer Rogue ever encountered, Katja possessed the same legendary stubbornness; she would not allow herself to relent until she confirmed her friend's safety. He didn't fear this woman, but neither was he arrogant enough to think she'd let him live if he presented a threat.

Despite her weathered appearance, Rogue sensed the enormous amount of magical energy Katja possessed, and he wouldn't be the fool to underestimate her. The only way to avoid further conflict with her, he decided, is to remain calm.

Suddenly Rogue became conscious of the three mages standing not ten meters away, and how more people gathered since the conflict began.

Gajeel and the others' restlessness ebbed into the atmosphere, creating noticeable tension in the surrounding area. It didn't help at all, considering the last thing he needed was Katja reacting to the stimulus. The other mages just stood at a distance, cautiously observing his interaction with the new-comer.

Frankly, it surprised him to see Sting calmly watching amongst the crowd with a smirk on his face, instead of yelling obnoxiously like usual.

_Damn it_, he thought, _that idiot's enjoying this. _Just because Sting _happened_ to hold the position of his best friend (aside from Frosch), doesn't mean he condoned the guy being a prick.

Huffing in annoyance, Rogue turned his attention back to the battered woman who still held tightly onto his robe. He finally remembered to respond to her earlier question, while hoping she resisted the urge to punch his lights out.

"The Exceed, right?"

He actually forgot about Eve, mostly because he hadn't seen her since the previous day. Katja's eyes widened immensely, but he remained composed while she stiffened in response to his question. Rogue noticed a look of rage contorted her features into an unpleasant expression, but she hesitated to attack. Instead, she gave him a menacing growl.

"I swear, if you hurt her I'll- !"

"KATJA!"

Rogue jolted in surprise as a winged mass of violet purple fur barreled right into the side of Katja's head, halting her in the process of threatening him. He instinctively grasped the bicep of her right arm, which hadn't yet released him, to keep the woman from toppling backwards after the impact.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING KAT!?" Eve screeched in her quivering voice, "YOU'RE IN NO CONDITION TO FIGHT!"

Katja stared at the feline in bafflement as Eve lectured her about her injuries, as well as picking fights with people she doesn't know. Then, she went on a tangent about how the woman shouldn't have punched out that poor mage (Gray), who still lay unconscious on the ground.

"AND YOU KNOW I-… I… I'm just so glad you're alive!"

The Exceed seemed to give up on staying mad, which resulted in her collapsing against Katja's chest and crying uncontrollably. After Eve's tears began to fall, Katja snapped out of bewilderment and wrapped her free arm around the cat. Rogue saw she fought tears of her own, because her voice shook when she finally addressed her friend.

"God, I'm sorry! I am _so_ sorry, Eve…"

With that, Katja lost her composure and cried as well. He realized her diamond scales began to quickly recede, giving him the ability to gage the unnatural heat of her skin.

_She's running a fever_.

Rogue couldn't fathom how she still stood on her own at this point, especially when the small amount of support he gave would only be enough to keep her balanced.

He lost his train of thought when Natsu commenced to shout loudly from the other side of the clearing, walking towards them in the process.

"Hey blondie! We ain't done here, I can't let Metal Head have _all_ the fun. C'MERE AND FIGHT ME!" He smashed both of his fists together, fire igniting with the motion.

"I'm all fired up…" Natsu grinned evilly, spewing flames as he approached.

Rogue tensed immediately. There was absolutely no way Katja could take on Natsu, with her prior adrenaline already dissipated. He didn't know this girl, but he _did_ know that most people wouldn't fare well in her present state. Thankfully, Natsu's blonde companion intervened by whacking him on the shoulder with her fist.

"Are you insane!? Can't you see the condition she's in!?" The celestial mage, Lucy, was livid.

"Aww c'mon Luce~"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!"

"Man, you're no fun…"

"Shut up! There's food being served in the main tent, go get some before it's gone."

At the mention of food, Natsu and twenty other mages bolted in the direction of a large green tent located in the far corner of the campsite.

Rogue sighed in relief when he saw most of the crowed had leaving in pursuit of a meal, but noticed Gajeel, Laxus Dreyar, Lucy, Sting, and the Fairy Tail guild master still remained. He saw Gajeel and Sting smirking at him simultaneously while wiggling their eyebrows suggestively, which he didn't understand until realizing that Katja still tightly gripped the front of his clothing, and he her upper arm.

After giving them both a dubious look, he moved to release her arm, only halting when he saw Porlyusica rushing towards them at high-speed. Rogue was about to say something, but in that moment the elder woman appeared behind Katja and proceeded to smack the taller girl on the back of the head. Hard.

The blow startled Katja, making her release her grip on him. However, he kept hold of her arm even after she let go.

"You fool girl! What are you doing out of bed!?" Porlyusica roared in fury, her eyes bright with rage. Katja just looked at her as if she's never seen the woman before in her life. Oh, wait.

"And YOU!" She said pointing at Gajeel, "You and that idiot fire-breather thought it wise to pick a fight with such an injured person!? This is why I detest humans!" Gajeel huffed in response to her lecture.

"C'mon old lady, I'm sure she's fine." Gajeel must still be mad about Katja attempting to decapitate him.

"JUST HOW STUPID ARE YOU?!"

The pink-haired woman was panting with fury at this point, but regained her composure quickly. However, she became enraged again when Makarov grinned sheepishly in her direction.

"Damned old fool! You're telling me you just stood there and watched the whole thing!?"

When it came to Makarov, Porlyusica was even more abrasive than usual.

"Heh, heh. I thought it would be a good show!" His excuse was not satisfactory in the least.

"This girl has enough sedatives in her blood to kill a horse! Do you think _that _would make for a good show!?"

Rogue stopped paying attention to their argument when a large weight in his grasp suddenly dragged him downward. He looked below and saw Katja no longer standing, but on her knees with her legs sticking out from under her. His grip elevated her arm, but the rest of her body sat limp and shook uncontrollably. Eve failed to react, however, because said Exceed lay asleep against the girl's sizeable chest, snoring lightly.

"Madam Por-". He tried to interject, but Porlyusica was too worked up to notice.

"You're supposed to be a Guild Master, yet you allow your "kids" to leave chaos in their wake!"

"Yes, yes. These brats are quite energetic aren't they?" Makarov smiled in such a way that only infuriated the healer more.

The two elder mages remained too occupied with each other to bother with the rest of them, so Rogue looked back to Gajeel and Sting to see if they would be of any assistance. Sting kept enthusiastically watching the elderly folks banter, but the iron dragon slayer took notice of his predicament and proceeded to alleviate the situation.

"HEY! OLD BATS!"

Porlyusica and Makarov halted their banter in order to give the large man a peeved look, but adverted their attention to Rogue and Katja when Gajeel jerked a thumb in their direction. The healer's eyes widened in alarm as she rushed over to kneel by the girl's side, taking her pulse and gaging her temperature as soon as she reached them.

"We need to get her back to the tent, now!"

Rogue was slightly alarmed at the urgency in her voice, but understood once he picked up the sound of Katja's slowing pulse.

Gajeel meandered over to the other side to help Rogue lift the woman, but just as they were about to start towards the tent, Lucy stopped them.

"Wait! Let me take Eve…" The celestial mage carefully dislodged the sleeping feline from under Katja's arm, and stepped away to let them pass once she completed the task. The two black-haired mages shifted Katja into a more accommodating position, then continued following Porlyusica back to the medical tent.

"Jesus, she weighs a ton. You actually carried her a whole mile by yourself?" Gajeel seemed surprised that Rogue actually possessed some physical strength. The younger man only huffed in response.

"I couldn't just leave her there, Gajeel." Which was true; Katja's chances of surviving in the chaos left by FACE and Tartaros were slim to none. Had he not found her by chance the other day, her death would have been absolute. Eve, while trapped in the small cage, would've starved to death at some point in that wasteland. He found them by sheer luck, and he only did so by following Katja's silent cries.

He snapped out of his thoughts when the taller man suddenly ruffled his hair.

"You're a good kid, Raios."

After that, Rogue grumbled something about using his real name, but also felt embarrassed by the sudden praise.

* * *

Once Rogue and Gajeel managed to heave Katja onto a cot in the medical bay, Porlyusica unceremoniously pushed the two dragon slayers out of the way in order to treat the unconscious woman. She quickly hooked the girl up to an IV and began moving about the tent while preparing various liquids to be used for injections.

Rogue noticed Katja's skin beginning to pail at an alarming rate; her lips lost their color first, with her cheeks following suit shortly after. He also picked up the distinct sound of her heartbeat, which slowed with every passing moment. The anxiety in Rogue's stomach exploded tenfold when Katja's lips slightly tinted a bluish-purple in color, signifying the direness of her medical condition.

Gajeel definitely noticed as well, because he stiffened after glancing in the girl's direction.

"Hey old lady, I think you need to hurry it up over there." After he spoke, Porlyusica rushed over and roughly pushed them both to the side once again.

"Move you idiots! You're just getting in the way." The pink-haired woman wasted no time, injecting Katja with various substances while her forehead creased in concentration. Rogue glanced in Gajeel's direction to see whether he thought it best to leave, but was met with a suspicious look from the older mage instead.

"Where _exactly_ did you find this kid, Ryos?" Rogue decided to ignore the fact Gajeel called him 'Ryos' (again) in favor of answering his inquiry.

"Well-"

"GET LOST YOU BRATS!" Porlyusica forgot they were still in the room, that is, until Gajeel opened his mouth. Now she hissed at them in annoyance, as if their presence hindered her work.

The two mages turned to leave, but stopped when Makarov swiftly entered the tent.

"Porlyusica, the Rune Knights are outside _demanding_ we hand over any able-bodied survivors for questioning. Have you any in your care at the moment?" Makarov's gaze was serious, but something akin to mischief flickered in his eyes.

"Yes, but she is not in any way fit to travel. Moving her will most likely result in her death, for she's barely alive as it is."

Rogue heard Katja's heartbeat returned to normal due to whatever miracle Porlyusica performed, but she was still unconscious and sickly pail.

Makarov made his way over to the cot and turned to the much taller healer, looking up at the woman as he did so.

"They may try to take her by force, due to her lack of alibi …" His eyes darkened when he spoke, but Porlyusica's gaze remained unwaveringly defiant.

"Am I flinching, Makarov?"

In response, the guild master looked away from her and sighed, but a small smile played on his weathered face.

"Understood."

Following his curt reply, the smaller man formed a sign using his right hand and placed it over the bare shoulder of Katja's right arm, muttering something intelligible in the process. The area around the master's hand began to glow, emitting a soft light, which disappeared soon after he ceased chanting. After removing his hand, Rogue, Gajeel, and Porlyusica clearly saw the moss-colored insignia of Fairy Tail covering the area of Katja's shoulder.

"Now you owe me one…" Makarov smirked in the healer's direction, where she only 'hmphed' in response and turned back to check Katja over once again. Rogue was surprised, to say the least, but somewhat relieved since the girl seemed to be under Makarov's protection for the time being.

Gajeel, who silently watched throughout the whole scene, huffed in exasperation and exited the tent without another word. Rogue thought it best to follow suit, but Makarov stopped him when he started to move.

"We need to have a chat, you and I. Don't we, young man?" he eyed the younger mage suspiciously, but a glint of amusement shone in his gaze.

"What do you mean?" Rogue wasn't sure just what the master wanted to talk to him about, but assumed it involved Katja. He knew as much about the girl as the rest of them, which amounted to absolutely nothing. Bringing her here is the only thing he did differently after their chance encounter.

"You and I will have our talk once we reach home and rebuild our guild… for the third time." Makarov outwardly grimaced at the thought of the demolished building, along with the cost of reconstructing it.

"Sting and I must return to Lycoris and assess the damage to our own guild," Rogue countered. "Unfortunately, we do not possess the time to stay in Magnolia."

The master of Fairy Tail pondered the young man's words for a moment, but smiled up at him afterwards.

"Magnolia is on the way, besides, I doubt the third mage in your company will make it far with such injuries."

Rogue was confused to whom Makarov was referring, but it hit him like a ton of bricks after about five seconds.

Minerva.

It was true, she is unconscious at the moment and there's no telling when she will wake up. Her life isn't in danger, but the injuries she sustained combined with her now-demon body probably took a large toll. He mentally sighed when he realized there seemed to be no way around it.

Rogue relented after thinking it over, but he saw no getting out of this situation. Plus, they could easily contact Sabertooth with a communication lacryma once they reach the city.

"You'll have to convince Sting…"

"It's decided then. We will depart for Magnolia tomorrow morning, after these capitol buffoons clear out."

Makarov exited the tent following their brief dialogue, leaving Rogue alone in the medical bay with Porlyusica and the mysterious blonde dragon slayer.

* * *

**Pfft, lol, thanks for reading, and I hope this story is still interesting. This is my first fic, so I wouldn't be surprised if there's some glaring hole in the plot that I'm missing. Anyway, please drop a review, even if you hate this story and feel like breathing fire, 'cause I ain't afraid a' no flames!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! Wassup? Alright, I've got an announcement to make: **

**THIS STORY IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION. Now don't worry, I'm not giving up on it or anything. It just needs some TLC and a few adjustments to make it into something I can be satisfied with. I fucked up the first few chapters, and Katja/Eve's characters aren't how I originally planned. There will be noticeable changes, but nothing drastic to the original plot (not that much has happened yet, lol). I will be making updates and posting new chapters whenever I find the motivation to get off my ass and write.**

**That being said, I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN FAIRY TAIL OR ANY CHARACTERS, THEY BELONG TO HIRO MASHIMA. I only own Katja and Eve.**

* * *

The trek back to Magnolia was agonizing; it took three whole days to navigate around the inconvenient mountains of rubble for those who were in well enough condition to walk. They weren't even very far from the city to begin with, only a few miles at most, but most of the roads didn't survive the falling debris. It also didn't help that most in the group were completely spent from battle.

On the morning they left for the journey, Porlyusica recruited a few mages who specialize in teleportation magic to help transport the most severely injured individuals back to her home for recuperation, leaving the rest to walk the distance back to the demolished guild.

They finally reached the town on the evening of the third day, where groans and sighs of relief echoed through the streets upon their arrival. As they saw earlier from atop a hill, Magnolia somehow survived total obliteration, but indeed took the brunt of the onslaught. Fairy Tail's guild hall still remained in splinters where Tartaros left it a few days prior. It was too late in the evening to even speak of reconstructing the guild hall, so Makarov decreed that they all should rest up and be prepared for a few long days of work beginning promptly the next morning.

Rogue and Sting were lucky enough to have the master set them up with temporary living arrangements in a vacant apartment building, since they wouldn't be leaving for some time.

After settling in, Frosch immediately waddled over to the bed and fell asleep atop one of the pillows lain there, where he began snoring quietly moments later. The green feline hardly said a word the whole day, most likely out of exhaustion, but it was a rarity for Rogue to witness a silent Frosch. It was then that said Exceed started to mumble something about food and rolled around in the softness of the pillow. Rogue raised a brow in amusement at his friend's sleeping antics and turned to leave the bedroom in hopes of finding a place to sit.

It was in the kitchen at a window with a cushioned sill that Rogue decided to get off his feet. Earlier, he found an extra blanket in the closet to wrap around himself since the nights were still chilly in Magnolia, even though the city's located farther south than Lycoris.

As he sat, Rogue mulled over the recent events involving the battle with Tartaros a few days ago; beginning with how he and Sting received a ridiculous message from Erza Scarlet regarding Minerva's affiliation with the demon guild, and up to his surprise encounter with that strange girl.

He also acutely recalled how the dragons, who until just recently were missing, appeared and saved their world from FACE. Weisslogia, Skiadrum, Grandine, Metalicana, and Igneel the Fire King emerged from within five Dragon slayers to combat Acnologia and the pillars of destruction. It was quite the surprise when they all found out that their lives ended years ago, leaving only their souls to remain. Even though their reunion was short-lived, it eased Rogues mind knowing that he did not, in fact, kill his foster father when he was a child. He only hoped that Sting found the same relief.

Technically, there would have been seven dragons, but Laxus Dreyar and that other mage from the Oracion Seis were of the "Second Generation" – therefore, they never hosted a dragon's soul within their bodies. However, due to recent events, there were now a total of eight known Dragon Slayer mages residing in Fiore.

Rogue's thoughts turned to Katja when he realized that a sixth dragon did not appear following the battle. _I wonder..._ He thought to himself. _Is she a second generation like the younger Dreyar and Cobra?_

Fatigue and other matters kept his mind off of the woman for the past few days, but now that he was able to properly focus, it wouldn't stop. Plus, his brooding habit only fueled the continuous thoughts currently simmering in his mind.

Memories of their first meeting suddenly came to mind, including vivid images of the whole ordeal. He remembered how Katja's eyes appeared black as a result of her disorientation and rage- which he would continue to recollect in the months ahead. Her hair was a wild mass of golden curls, darkened by God-knows-what, that barely brushed her shoulders in a bob-like fashion. Her stature was definitely one to take note of- only a few inches shy of six feet, a large skeletal structure and bulk muscle made her out to be built like a wall under her feminine figure. _NOT _the kind of person he would ever take lightly. Also, the amount of magical energy Rogue sensed coming from her that day was, to put it plainly, terrifying. He counted himself lucky that he wasn't her target for the spell she cast, which ironically ended up saving his life.

The day he stepped between her and Gajeel during their time at the make-shift camp brought back the sense of danger he felt coming from her; she was ready to take them all out if it meant ensuring the safety of her feline companion. Her earlier attempt to decapitate Gajeel was proof enough. It was only when Eve appeared that the blonde woman returned to a semi-lucid state, then nearly died from the excess amount of sedatives in her body soon after. The strange wounds which lined her physique gave him a hunch or two as to why she suddenly appeared in the chaos, but he wouldn't make any assumptions until the girl could speak for herself. Rogue only hoped she would recover from whatever ordeal lead to her current condition because, frankly, Katja looked like she'd been to Hell and back.

After having been staring out the window for that internal monologue, Rogue turned to get the time from an analogue clock resting above the kitchen's entrance. It read exactly 11:45 pm. He's been sitting in the kitchen for about an hour, which was enough to make him drowzy. All of the mages were going to rally and get the guild rebuilt in the morning, which he and Sting would be helping out with in return for the hospitality Makarov showed them the past few days.

As he made his way back to the bedroom where Frosch still lay sleeping, Rogue hoped to himself that they would be able to contact Sabertooth headquarters in Lycoris sometime in the following days as the world began regaining normalcy.

* * *

Five days of reconstruction went by before Fairy Tail's guild hall was restored to its former glory. The whole project may have taken twice as long, had it not been for the help of magic and every well-abled member contributing to the cause. Rogue had always admired how this guild could easily gather together and function as one entity or family, and there was no lack in morale when it came the mages of Fairy Tail.

The guild hall itself was built to be much larger and sturdier than its previous incarnate; an outdoor pool, restaurant/bar, lounge, and basement were all included, as well as the entire structure rising to a good three stories. They also expanded the infirmary to accommodate twenty patients should the need arise since this particular group had a knack for getting themselves into trouble.

After wrapping up the work and final details of the building on the fifth day, everyone decided it was time to celebrate. Not that they needed a reason, but the mages felt a party was well deserved for defeating Tartaros, creating a new guild hall, and honoring the dearly departed dragons who ended up saving the world.

Sounds of the celebration were heard throughout Magnolia that night, where many hours of drinking and dancing took place. Massive amounts of food were consumed by all who were present, but Natsu and Gajeel probably ate more than the entire group combined. There were a few playful scuffles involving a certain flaming Dragon Slayer and Ice Mage, but those were quelled immediately by Titania after a table was smashed into pieces as a result of said quarrels.

Everything started to die down sometime around three in the morning when various individuals sleeping in random places throughout the guild hall. Makarov announced around four that anyone who wasn't already unconscious were to go home and sleep off whatever bad decisions they may have made. Unfortunately for Rogue, Sting turned out to be one of those people. And as appointed best friend of said blue-eyed Dragon Slayer, it was Rogue's duty to escort him back to their temporary location of residency. Even if the guy was totally shit-faced.

Rogue never was a drinker to begin with; he could throw-back a Sake here or there, but the taste of alcohol always made his elevated senses riot in protest against the substance. Sting, however, always seemed to ignore the awful sensation and got himself completely wasted whenever there's cause for celebration. Speaking of Sting, the blond man was currently leaning on Rogue while babbling non-stop about whatever came to mind in his drunken stupor.

"Man, didja ever notice how that blonde chick always lookszat Natsu? I wonder if he'll ever get on dat… By the way, when are ya ever gonna getchurself a lady friend? Oh yeah, whuttabout that broad you carried all'daway to camp and how she man-handled Gray like a boss? I bet ya liked it when she yanked ya around too, ya always were kinda masochistic like that… She ever comin' back? It was pretty funny when she tried to use Gajeel as a knife sharpener, HAAAA~."

"Jesus, Sting…" Rogue never actually took what his friend said seriously while in this particular state, but sometimes his tangents that are plain irksome. Meanwhile, Lector and Frosch quietly tagged along while giggling at Stings drunken ramblings.

Ten minutes after Rogue deposited his friend and Lector at their apartment, he was able to finally retire for the night in the adjacent apartment. Wasting no time, he quickly changed into a black sleeveless shirt and some sweatpants, then proceeded to climb in bed shortly after. Sleep came quickly to him that night. He needed only to close his eyes, and exhaustion filled every crevice of his mind.

* * *

In the early afternoon of the following day, anyone who wasn't too hung over lazily made their way to the guild to see what events were planned for the day. Rogue ended up dragging Sting into the building around noon so they could make use of the guild's communication lacryma and contact Sabertooth.

Once the eldest Strauss sibling kindly showed them to the room where the lacryma resided, Rogue turned on his heel and made a silent beeline in the opposite direction. He decided to let his best friend go solo when making the call back to headquarters, because he didn't want to be in the immediate vicinity when Sting's fair-haired girlfriend unleashed her wrath in response to their sudden disappearance two weeks ago. Yukino may be timid woman around strangers, but she could quickly morph into a fearsome being when angered..

Rogue was making his way to the bar when Porlyusica cross his path out of nowhere, causing him to stop in his tracks to avoid colliding with her. She stopped as well and turned to face him. While giving him her usual annoyed grimace, the healer proceeded to address him briefly before continuing on her way.

"Your friend will need a decent amount of time to recuperate, about a few weeks. Her body still needs a while to eradicate the foreign blood from her system, even _with_ the help of magic." The healer gave Rogue a blank stare afterwards, seemingly waiting for a response.

"I understand. We greatly appreciate the care you're giving Minerva." After he finished speaking, the shorter woman merely "hmphed" in acknowledgement and continued on her path.

His gaze followed her cloaked form as she entered through the doorway of Makarov's study, closing it behind her shortly afterwards.

After that somewhat awkward encounter, Rogue walked the remaining short distance to the bar where he planned to sit and drink tea for a bit until Yukino finished verbally assaulting her boyfriend via telecom.

Rogue was about to take a seat at the end of the counter when he looked to the opposite end, and to his surprises, spotted Katja perched in the last stool. She was slouching forward with her head resting in her arms, which were crossed on top of the polished wooden counter with a glass of water sitting close by. The last time Rogue saw her was the day before they left for Magnolia, where she lay unconscious in the medical bay looking closer to dead than alive. He was intrigued to find that her hair had finally been cleansed of whatever foulness covered it before and returned to its appropriate color; mostly a golden blonde with natural streaks of brown and every other shade between. It parted in such a way where it would partially cover her left eye if not tucked behind her ear at the moment and still possessed thick curls, which puffed out slightly from her head in a barely shoulder-length bob. Never before has he seen such thick hair on an individual, but it suited her in its entirety.

Barely any bandages covered her body; only some wrapped around her wrists and ankles. The only remains of her previous wounds were the pale, circular scars that ran down her limbs. Porlyusica's healing abilities never ceased to amaze him.

Katja still wore the simple cotton dress from the medical bay, but he surmised that she didn't have any other clothing to dress herself.

While eying her strangely uniform scars, Rogue spotted one of the guild's trashcans directly next to her on the ground in the corner. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but before he could think too much about it, a high-pitched laugh caused him to avert his gaze over to one of the round tables further into the room.

Four of the Exceeds, including Lector and Frosch, sat atop a table with a pile of fish in the center. Happy had stuffed his mouth with fish to the point where his cheeks swelled to twice their usual size, making Lector and Frosch guffaw while Carla stared at the blue feline disapprovingly. Rogue realized Pantherlily and Eve's absence a moment later, and proceeded to look around the room in means of locating them. Pantherlily was nowhere to be found, probably out training, but he spotted Eve sitting quietly with Lucy and Wendy while looking rather upset. He assumed they were speaking of events that transpired before their rescue.

"Hello there~!"

Rogue turned in surprised to see Mirajane Strauss leaning over the bar, fixing him with a kindhearted gaze as she did so.

"Good afternoon." Rogue always spoke formally to most people for some odd reason, but at least he's polite.

Mirajane just smiled and giggled at his social awkwardness.

"Is there anything I can get you?"

He was about to request an Oolong tea when a ghastly sound came from the other end of the bar, making Rogue jerk his head in the same direction out of surprise.

The awful noise came from Katja, as he could see by the way she was doubled over and vomiting into the trashcan next to her.

'_Ah,' _Rogue thought to himself,_ 'that's why it was there_.'

After her sudden fit of nausea concluded, Katja slumped over and once again buried her head in her arms, but this time gripping her head as she did so. Rogue must have had a questioning look on his face of some sort, because Mira courteously enlightened him to the situation.

"She's been that way for about a week now, according to Porlyusica. I've tried giving her a bit of solid food, but she hasn't kept anything down besides small amounts of water." A sad look graced the Take-Over mage's features as she gazed towards the female Dragon Slayer. "Whatever happened to that girl before you found her must have been awful."

Ah, so Mirajane _was_ aware of his involvement. Rogue didn't really try to hide the fact, nor did he really tell anyone of the events leading to her being taken under the Makarov's wing. He took his gaze of Katja and returned it to Mirajane, who perked up when she noticed him looking in her direction.

"Anyway, I'm sure she'll get better soon! Is there anything I can get you right now?"

Rogue thought about it for a moment, returning his gaze to Katja's form while doing so.

"Would you mind bringing some soup and an Oolong tea?"

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Mira kindly delivered the tea quickly so Rogue could casually sip on it. He stood leaning against the counter with his cup to his lips when he saw Sting emerge from the smaller room where he'd been talking to Yukino via lacryma.

Said Dragon Slayer looked, for lack of a better word, disgruntled. He walked over in Rogue's direction, giving his friend a dubious look once he reached the bar and stood next to him.

"Dude, that was intense." Sting sighed heavily and curtly ordered a beer from Mira, chugging half of it as soon as she handed him the pint. Rogue only smirked at Stings dishevelment.

"She's angry? Not surprised."

"More like furious, I mean _fuck_! She's pissed about how we up and left without warning, even though I explained the whole thing with Minerva." Sting huffed and chugged more of his beverage.

"Telling her beforehand would have brought less consequences." Rogue's bluntness made Sting snort into his cup.

"It is what it is, but she said the pass is blocked by rubble. The mess from FACE caused a few landslides when it hit the mountains, so we're gonna to be stuck here for a few weeks before it's cleared up." Sting seemed annoyed by this, but Rogue actually believed it to be ideal considering the circumstances.

"Porlyusica informed me that Minerva won't be fit to travel for a few weeks… We'd be here either way."

Sting grunted in understanding as he took another swig, slamming the wooden pint onto the counter once he finished.

"If that's the case, we're gonna have to ask Makarov if he'll help us find some work while we're here." The blond man squinted and rubbed his temple in thought, but huffed and ceased the motion after a minute or so. "I'm still hung over, so I'm gonna go and sleep. I'll see ya later." He quickly paid and casually waved as he walked out of the guild, then disappeared down the street towards their temporary residence building.

After Sting departed, Mira brought both the soup and a tea refill out of the kitchen with a joyful smile on her face.

"Here you go!" She said joyfully while placing a brown tray onto the counter next to him.

"Thank you." Rogue stood there and just looked at the bowl for a moment, but picked up the tray and started walking towards the other end of the bar when he noticed Mira giving him a creepy look of amusement.

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Rogue wasn't quite sure of how to approach Katja at this point in time. Not because he was afraid of her or anything like that, but because he knew absolutely nothing about her or how she would react to his sudden appearance.

He knew she was dangerous- actually, scratch that, she was _incredibly _dangerous. But probably not so much at the moment, judging by how she has barely moved an inch in the past hour.

Approaching quietly as possible, Rogue stopped just two feet away from the woman, hoping that she was in a more stable state of mind. He hesitated for a few moments out of insecurity, but finally tried calling out to her.

"Excuse me…" Katja didn't even twitch.

_Maybe she's asleep, _he thought to himself. "….Katja?"

As soon as Rogue uttered her name, Katja snapped to attention and turned to look him dead in the eye. He didn't noticeably flinch when she did this, but inwardly stiffened in surprise.

Rogue was stunned for a few moments due to how powerful of an effect her gaze had on him. She wasn't glaring at him menacingly, but instead her green eyes held his steadily- calm and unwavering. This is the first time he's seen her look so _normal_; the first time he saw her, she adorned those diamond scales and wild nearly dead the second time. At the moment, however, her skin held a pigmentation of very light tan, but her lips were still unnaturally pale. Her eyes were neither dilated nor stagnant with fever, but a clear, dark, green that could only be described as emerald. Her pupils slit ever so slightly, just enough so that you could tell they weren't round.

What surprised Rogue the most was the fact that she hadn't even flinched at the sight of _his_ eyes. His crimson, snake-like irises tended to unnerve most people or make them uncomfortable. However, _she _had yet to avert her gaze. Plenty of individuals he's known for years still have trouble just making eye contact- where she sat unfazed.

Concluding that thought, Rogue suddenly remembered why he approached her in the first place- plus, she was still staring at him.

"Here," He held the tray with the soup out to her. Katja only then averted her eyes so as not to drop the tray when she slowly reached to take it.

"Eat slowly." Rogue wasn't trying to be so blunt towards her, but his social awkwardness always made him speak this way. After being relieved of the tray, he sat down with his tea to her left, leaving a seat in between them so he didn't crowd her at the nearly empty counter.

There were a few moments of silence as she stared at the tray, as if in a trance. Rogue didn't expect to hear anything from her, but she proceeded to surprise him yet again.

"Thanks…" Katja's voice held the same resonance he remembered from their dealings a week prior, but she spoke in a softer tone this time around.

Rogue casually met her gaze once more and nodded politely in return, but she didn't drop her eyes as quickly as he expected.

His eyes widened slightly, but never left hers until he became too embarrassed to keep eye-contact. It was all he could do to keep the flustered blush from rising to his pale skin.

After a few moments of strangely comfortable silence, he chanced a look in her direction where he found her still looking at him with a glimmer of something akin to amusement in her eyes.

He was about to ask her why she stared at him like that, but in that instant Katja's eyes widened in urgency, and she quickly turned away from him to retch (once again) into the trashcan.

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**HEYYYYYYYYY what's happenin'? FINALLY some interaction between these two, the intro stuff took forever. Thank you for checking out the latest chapter of this story, I hope it was worthy! Anyway, if you all would kindly drop a review or R&amp;R with your comments and criticisms (or whatever, lol) that would be wonderful.**

**Thanks as always!**

**~ofthehallows~**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! I'm sorry that it's been so long, but I had a massive dry spell in the creative department which led to me not updating for several months. However, I recently got back on the Brain Train and immediately produced this for you. I mentioned in the previous chapter that this story is under construction, but it won't impede any future chapters to come.**

**Disclaimer: I wouldn't be writing fanfiction if I owned Fairy Tail. God damn. **

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Makarov sat quietly at his desk while working through a sizeable stack of paperwork. The task was painfully redundant- enough so that he easily lost himself in thought. The Guild Master often pondered and recalled memories of the last few weeks, especially the grueling battle his family endured to save their world. He worried, however, about the future as well. The stirring of Zeref's demons only foretold ominous events to come.

His brow wrinkled in thought, but quickly rose in mild surprise when Porlyusica passed through the wooden office door.

"Ah, Porlyusica, how lovely of you to grace us with your presence." Makarov always took pleasure in riling the woman up, and his mild sarcasm usually did the job. The taller woman narrowed her eyes in response to his antics, but said nothing otherwise. He assumed she was in one of her "moods", and decided not to irritate her further.

"I need to speak with you." Porlyusica sounded weary, but she still managed to fix him with a distasteful gaze.

"Oh? Whatever about?" It was unusual for the healer to come unannounced, so the topic must hold some importance.

"The girl," she replied curtly, "is ready to be released from my care."

He assumed that she referred to Katja, the most recent addition to Fairy Tail's troublesome brood. She informed him a few days earlier about Minerva's need for further treatment, which prompted the need for her Sabertooth companions to extend their stay.

"Is that so? I'll make some living arrangements right away." Makarov was quite relieved to hear of the girl's recovery, especially due to her concerning condition when Rogue Cheney first brought her to them.

"There's something else," Porlyusica looked somewhat troubled, which happened quite rarely. "The state of her magic is… Concerning."

Makarov was puzzled; the girl possesses Dragon Slayer magic, but so do four others in the guild. Still, he may have reason to be concerned. Especially since Porlyusica brought it up.

"Go on," he urged..

"Her Slayer magic is normal. However, there is something foreign that I've never come across in all my years…" She paused to ponder on her next statement. "We found the mark of Tartaros on her body the day Cheney brought her into camp. These two coinciding factors do not bode well."

The Guild Master understood what the healer tried to convey, but nothing in Katja's behavior made cause for worry, just yet.

"I understand, we'll keep an eye on her."

Porlyusica didn't seem quite satisfied with his answer, but decided to trust him. If anyone knew how to deal with troublesome mages, surely it was Makarov Dreyar.

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Rogue only stared at his tea as Katja recovered from her most-recent bout of nausea. After shifting back to her former position on the stool, she reached for the large glass of water that sat to her left on the counter. After taking a sizeable gulp, she swished it around in her mouth, then spat it into the trashcan.

"Sorry." She stared at the glass in her hands while looking flustered, probably feeling embarrassed for putting on such a display.

"No need," he replied. Besides, the girl wasn't to blame for her sickness. They sat in silence for a while as Katja slowly sipped her water. He thought about how different she seemed now as compared to that day after the battle. It was almost chilling. Almost.

Katja ceased the assault on her beverage and let out an audible sigh. He peeked at her through the corner of his eye while taking a swig of tea, but she didn't seem to notice, or care for that matter. The sound of shuffling feet met his ears, and the eldest Strauss entered their vision shortly after.

"Hello Katja~! How are you feeling? Is there anything you need?" Mira wore a pleasant grin, as always.

"I'm fine," she replied softly, but never raised her gaze. Mira chirped a quick response and bustled off upon noticing other people waiting to place their orders.

Rogue wondered if Katja would eventually ask him about the day they met, but she seemed to have expended most of her energy earlier, and now leaned against the counter wearily. He noticed that she finished most of her meal, and took it as a sign that she was progressively getting better, but his thoughts came to a halt when he saw the Guild Master walking in their direction.

As Makarov approached, he gave Rogue a brief greeting and then proceeded to hop up onto the barstool separating the two. Balancing himself on the cushion, the petite man turned to address Katja.

"Hey there, how are you feeling?" He wore an expression of kindness that made Katja raise her head enough to look at him.

She looked at the elder and shrugged, but said nothing. Her defensive nature made her untrusting of others.

"I see... Now, I have arranged for you to be housed in an apartment complex just a few blocks from this building. Your first month of rent is taken care of, but you will need to take on jobs to support yourself once you make a complete recovery."

"I understand," she replied. Katja humbly looked away at this time and casually lifted her hand to brush the forest-green guild mark covering her right shoulder. She ran a few fingers over the mark, looking ponderous as she did so.

Eve came fluttering over shortly after and landed atop the young woman's mop of curls, while inquiring about how she's feeling. Katja breathed a laugh and assure the feline that she felt fine, if not a bit tired. The blonde seemed to perk up a little when she noticed the stark-white guild mark her friend displayed on the back of her furry, violet head. Eve proceeded to chat light-heartedly about the new people she got to meet and the other Exceeds, while Katja sat and listened. Makarov just stood contentedly and listened to the two. That is, until Natsu broke another table and elicited a cringe from the older man.

"Right," Makarov began, after yelling at the fire-breather, "Well, I think it's high time for some introductions." The man grinned, and with a flip, landed atop the second floor railing that resided just above the bar complex.

"Alright, listen up you lot!" His voice thundered across the hall, undoubtedly amplified by magic, and startled everyone into silence. They all drew their attention upward to where he stood.

"I'd like to start by saying "good morning," but it is clearly well into the afternoon because you bastards partied into the early hours of the night." A few cheers of the crowd made him pause until the noise once again died down. "Now, for a few announcements: as you know, we have a few guests from our ally guild Sabertooth. I trust you will treat them well in return for their aid during our most recent conflict. Secondly, due to said conflict we've got some new brats joining our family." Makarov motioned to point directly below him, where Katja and Eve sat at the bar. They froze as every member looked in their direction.

"Katja and Eve belong to Fairy Tail, so I expect you to treat them as you would your fellow nakama." He paused once again as people clapped and shouted to each other from across the room, waiting to state his last announcement. "Lastly, jobs have been posted on new boards, so get your tails in gear! That is all."

At the conclusion of Makarov's speech, the guild members began to loudly converse amongst themselves, while others got up to inspect the job boards placed around the first floor. Katja and Eve both let out sighs, relieved that they no longer held everyone's attention. However, it wasn't long before a few of the guild members came over to greet them.

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Lucy Heartfilia arrived first, gracing the three of them with a warm smile.

"Hi, I'm Lucy! Eve and I met previously, but I wanted to come and introduce myself." The shorter mage held her hand to Katja, who took it in greeting.

"Thank you for looking after Eve these past few days." Katja smiled in gratitude towards the celestial mage, who then quickly assured her it was no problem at all.

A similar process repeated with Levy, Cana, Wendy and Erza as the day went on, but things happened differently when Natsu decided to approach her.

To be frank, he greeted her with a "friendly" punch to the jaw and a mischievous smile. Lucy looked horrified and Rogue cringed in at the sight, but Natsu insisted on a duel.

Natsu's been itching for a rematch since their first encounter at the camp, and now she was just well enough to take him on. The blonde had yet to regain all of her energy, but her temper flared nonetheless. And of course, as a fellow Dragon Slayer, Katja reciprocated with equal enthusiasm. Enthusiasm for revenge, that is. Without warning, Katja tackled the pink-haired mage into a table of unsuspecting guild members who shouted in surprise at the sudden development. She rolled off of Natsu quickly enough to stand, whereas he jumped to his feet with a wicked grin on his face.

"Now _that's_ what I'm talkin' about!" He thrust his fists together, igniting flames between them.

She crossed her arms defensively and glared at him, bracing herself as he threw a fiery punch in her direction. A dark chuckle escaped from her when Natsu winced upon impact. He quickly withdrew his bloody fist and grasped it with his other hand.

"Ow! Motherf-!" Before he could finish, Katja punched him square in the face.

Rogue, of course, saw the glint of the diamond scales covering her arms and only shook his head disapprovingly in response to Natsu's hastiness. He was surprised, however, to see her adorn a brief grin of excitement as well. His eyes never left the brawling mages as they tore through the guild.

By this point, Natsu had tackled the female, and they fought in a ball of chaos on the ground. Eve just sat limply on the abandoned bar stool, looking as if she were about to have a panic attack. Lucy noticed immediately and tried her best to console the distraught Exceed.

They carved a path of destruction through the first floor and Gajeel raised an eyebrow at the pair as they came rolling past his table, but he soon followed them to observe the rest.

Eventually, Natsu ended up on his stomach with Katja pinning him down from above, appearing the victor. Even with her labored breathing, she looked about ready to tear him a new one. She grabbed a chunk of his pink hair and yanked his head backward off the ground, but released it in surprise when he spit fire that burned her other hand.

"Asshole-!" She growled, but stopped speaking as a sudden wave of nausea came over her. Katja slapped a hand to her mouth and tried to clamber off of Natsu, but he grabbed her ankle and halted her escape.

"Oh no you _fucking_ don't!" He grinned evilly as she tried to slash his arm with an armored hand. Natsu started reaching towards her, but stopped dead when she vomited right on the floor. His eyebrow twitched for a moment and his arm slackened as he stuttered a sheepish "oh."

Thankfully, Gajeel, who'd been silently watching until this point, decided to step in. He grabbed both of them by the scruff of their shirts, and yanked the shorter mages to their feet.

"Alright, we're done here." Gajeel stated authoritatively, and glared menacingly at Natsu when the human-torch started to protest.

Katja looked up towards the pierced man for a moment, but quickly averted her gaze when she recognized him from the camp.

It was only when Erza approached them (with a murderous aura) that Natsu stopped squirming and turned stiff as a tree. The scarlet-haired woman promptly snatched the boy from Gajeel's grasp and threw him over her shoulder, where he immediately fainted from fear. Once Natsu was thoroughly incapacitated, Erza turned to smile stunningly in Katja's direction.

"I apologize for this one, he is quite troublesome." Katja only blinked as Erza turned and carried Natsu off to god-knows-where. When the reequip mage disappeared, the blonde sighed in exasperation. She never planned on getting into a squabble with pinky, but adrenaline got the best of her. Now she needed to face an irritated Dragon Slayer of even greater stature, whom she may or may not have tried to kill two weeks ago. And as tall as Katja was, Gajeel still had a good five inches on her.

"Uh…" She started dumbly, not sure what to say in their current situation. He looked down at her, and huffed in annoyance.

"You've had enough fun for today," he stated matter-of-factly. The iron mage wasn't making a suggestion, he was _ordering _her to call it quits.

A weak "yeah" was all she could say in reply.

Gajeel seemed to be satisfied with her response because he finally released her collar. He then gave her a swift poke in the back, making her move in the direction of the bar, where all of the mages she just met awaited her return.

As soon as they both reached the bar, all the women standing there basically glomped the female Dragon Slayer. They worried for her safety during the brawl, and fussed over any bruising she obtained during it. Lucy apologized profusely for Natsu's behavior, to which Katja shrugged in indifference. At some point Eve got angry and started lecturing the taller girl about fighting in the guild, which elicited a half-hearted flurry of apologies from her.

During the commotion Levy looked over to Gajeel, giving him a thumbs-up while smiling in his direction, signaling a job well-done in handling the situation. He reciprocated with his own thumbs-up and a smirk. The script mage winked and stuck her tongue out at him, then swung her stool back around to make conversation.

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Gajeel turned to walk back to his table, but stopped when he felt a tug on his shirt.

"Wait." He turned to see Katja standing behind him, with a serious look on her face, and Eve pushing her from behind

"What's up?" His curt reply made her eye twitch, but she figured she might as well get this over with.

"Sorry for before. Eve told me that I tried to kill you, and stuff…" That came out less eloquent than expected, which is why Eve tugged on her hair in annoyance after that weak-ass apology. Its not like she remembered much from that time to begin with anyway.

Gajeel didn't react for a few moments, but blinked a few times instead.

"No sweat, kid." He surprised her with his casual demeanor, which explained her blank stare. After a few beats of silence he followed up in a softer tone, "I've been there".

She looked at him after a moment with wider eyes in understanding.

"I see. Thanks," she quietly replied.

The taller mage cracked smile as he held up his fist, to which her expression brightened and they shared a fist-bump. He turned to continue on his way, giving a brief wave as he left.

"See ya around, Puff." Gajeel chortled as he heard her make a sound of surprise.

"Puff…?" She repeated the nickname quietly to herself after his departure. Eve snorted at the name, and Katja narrowed her eyed at her in response. Her hands made their way to her hair, where she grimaced upon feeling the frizzy mess. As she tried to smooth it down, Levy and Lucy called her and Eve back to the bar, where the others were conversing.

While making their way back, Katja noticed the snake-eyed mage had yet to leave his spot at the bar. He casually sipped his tea as the group of females talked merrily to one another. She sat once again at the counter, but ended up right next to him since Lucy and Cana occupied the area. They said nothing, only sipped from their respective glasses. A few minutes passed before he broke the silence.

"You're bleeding." He glanced at her from the side, meeting her gaze. She looked away to inspect her arms, searching for the source of blood, but felt a tap on her shoulder that drew her attention back to him. "No, here." He pointed to his own left cheek. Katja lifted her hand to feel the area on her face where Natsu punched her earlier, and pulled away to find blood on her fingertips.

Oh. Placing a hand over the cut, she glanced around hoping to find a napkin. She needn't search long, because the young man held a piece of cloth out to her, which she accepted.

"Thanks." He nodded in return, going back to his tea afterwards. Katja realized she didn't know his name, which was odd, considering he knew hers. "What's your name?"

The question didn't seem to catch him off guard, but he hesitated in response.

"Rogue. Rogue Cheney." He looked at her then, waiting for a reaction. _Rogue,_ she thought, then smiled slightly and held her hand out to him. He hesitated again, but took it regardless.

"Nice to meet you, Rogue Cheney."

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**Alright, what is up guys? Again, I apologize for the horrendous lack of updates. Please drop a review if you loved it, hated it, or have suggestions of any kind because you know I love reading your feedback.**

**Thanks as always!**

**~ofthehallows~**

**P.S. Katja and Gajeel = BroTP**


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